Investing.com - Investors took advantage of more confusion about Fed policy on rates and took the precious metal higher in Asia on Thursday after minutes released overnight casts some doubt on a third hike this year.
Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 0.80% to $1,293.21 a troy ounce.
Fed minutes showed an increased debate about another rate hike this year and the political backlash against Donald Trump's remarks on racist confrontations this passed weekend in Virginia weighed.
The divide appeared in minutes released from the Federal Open Market Committee's July meeting, when central bank policymakers voted to hold the target rate to a range of 1% to 1.25%. The summary portrays views that inflation ultimately will get to the Fed's 2% target but is clearly not there yet.
Earlier, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said that while some price readings have fallen this year, expectations are more stable, adding that monetary policy must anticipate changes in the data and not react to temporary aberrations. She said there is roughly an equal chance that the Fed is forced to raise rates more or less aggressively than currently planned in the months and years ahead.
Overnight, gold prices turned positive on Wednesday, on the back of weaker U.S. housing data. Housing starts dropped 4.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.16 million units, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.
In its July policy statement, the Federal Reserve raised concerns over the slow pace of inflation while pointing out that it expects to begin unwinding its balance sheet “relatively soon”.
Ahead of the release, New York Fed chief Bill Dudley said earlier this week, he would favour a third rate hike this year.
Gold is sensitive to moves in U.S. rates, which lift the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as bullion.
Meanwhile, U.S.-North Korea tensions, which had underpinned the rally in gold last week, continued to ease as rhetoric from both sides cooled.